NBUS #12

Hello you lovely lovely people!  First, I would like to thank each and everyone of you who was kind enough to take the time and trouble to visit my blog whilst I was away, and for all the lovely comments!  It truly makes my day reading them all on my return!  Also, thank you to those who also wished me well regarding the wasp sting on my ankle.  I am happy to say that it is now healing well.  Nearly all the swelling has gone and there is just a hard lump and a bit of tenderness and bruising around the actual sting site, but it is getting there!

Now, on to today's card!  This is my first card since I have returned home.  I made it especially for Darnell's NBUS #12 Challenge

For those of you who are new to card-making, the acronym - which was coined by Darnell herself, and now is so famous it should be an entry in the dictionary - stands for Never Before Used Schtuff.  Which is to encourage us to dig out those supplies we have bought and never got around to using!

My NBUS is the unbranded cover die that arrived literally as I was going out the door to go to the airport before we left for Spain!  The panel beneath was one from my stash that I had made some time ago with 'Starlight Paints'.  These paints shimmer and shine like no others and have to be seen IRL to be fully appreciated.  However, I have done my best to photograph them in the best light possible (which is sadly lacking in this part of the world, at this time of year).  Here are the photos.

Thank you so much for your visit today and especially if you have left a comment.  You are all appreciated more than you know! 

 If you have a question, please be sure I have a way to contact you so I can answer, as a lot of you are 'no-reply' bloggers, so I am unable to reply via e-mail.

1-2-3

Why 1-2-3?  Well, it is, 1 'playday', 2 cards and 3 'unusual embellishments'.  Want to know more?  read on and I will tell you.

As it is raining again in my part of the globe, I thought I would just have a 'play-day' in my little attic space, I laughingly refer to as my 'craft room'.

The first thing I played with was a Stampin Up 'Bountiful Border' set that I hadn't got round to inking up yet and decided to use.  I did all my stamping and then decided that the white against the self patterned card base (that I had stamped a small image over) needed some sort of demarcation so I drew a purple line around three of the edges with a glitter marker - guess why there are sequins on it - no, no takers?  It's because . . . yes, you guessed it at the back . . . I smudged it!!

Never mind, here is that card.

On to card number two and the three unusual embellishments and another stamp set as yet unused, Simon Says Stamp 'Flowers On My Mind'.

I stamped an 'arrangement', but, I'm ashamed to say, couldn't be bothered with masking (it is a play-day remember) so I wasn't happy with the 'arrangement', but I didn't want to throw it away and so I carried on.

Now, this is where the three 'unusual' embellishments came in.  You know those 'smelly balls' you get as 'in wash scent boosters' . . . Lenor Unstoppables.  I thought, 'I wonder if I could use those in place of enamel dots and make the cards smell nice', well, . . . you can, and, . . . they do, so I adhered three to my card, and it smells all flowery!!  Result!  Here is said card.

Like I said, I wasn't really happy about the 'arrangement' and I wasn't going to post it, but I was so excited about the 'smelly balls' . . . what unusual items have you used on your cards? 

** Edit **

For those of you who have never heard of these "smelly balls"  (First, I'd like to share what my dear blog friend Mary of Carolina Cards hilariously referred to them as, 'smelly embellies' ) they are made by Lenor and are called 'Unstoppables' and are made to "make your washing smell lovely for twelve days"  they are technically half-balls as they are flat on the bottom!  Now, there are a number of things to point out here:

Number 1. They do nothing for my laundry, it smells better with ordinary fabric softener.

Number 2. Who has laundry that doesn't need washing for twelve days? 

Number 3. They are around £4/$5.50 USD  for 375 gms (which equates to 1000's)

Number 4. Someone said that they must be a UK thing, but another dear blogging friend, Brenda Lawrence of Friends Craftin' with Friends told me that she had got a sample packet through the door the other day . . . besides, it's rare for us in the UK to have something that the USA doesn't, so I'm fairly sure you must be able to either get them, or already have a very similar thing!

I hope you are all having a lovely Sunday.  Happy crafting! 

NBUS #6

Just a very quick post here, as I have a few things I have to take care of.  This card is for the lovely Darnell Knauss NBUS #6 challenge.  

 For those of you who are new to blogging, Darnell is the sweet lady who coined the acronym NBUS which stands for Never Before Used Schtuff and refers to supplies you have not yet used.

Mine is the Clearly Besotted, Simply Quilled stamp set.

I used one of the Hero Arts Ombre ink pads to do the stamping.

Thank you so much for your visit and have a lovely Sunday, whatever you are doing!  Hazel xx

Stepping Out Of My Comfort Zone!

Hi all my lovely friends!  I will have to keep this post fairly short, as the internet is still playing up (not as much as it has been, but still enough to make it quite tedious).

However, you know what they say, “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade” . . . well, I did just that!  When my computer was playing up and the internet was hardly usable, I made cards!!

I have been trying techniques and styles that I have never had the nerve to try before and this is one of them.

Some of the 'experiments' I have tried have been more successful than others, but the failure is in the 'not trying', not the failure itself . . . right?

Anywho, today I stepped out of my comfort zone and thought I would have a go at the kind of 'artsy' style I admire in other's work, but have never had the nerve, or the talent to try.  The result is  not wonderful, but who's is 100% of the time?  Plus, I had fun trying!

Here it is, exposed in all it's nakedness and feeling vulnerable . . . well, that's how it feels! 

I used a NBUS stamp set from Simon Says Stamp and stamped and masked one of the trees on to a sponged background, coloured them sketchily - for texture - and added the white dots that are so popular now and stamped the sentiments from the same stamp set.

If I did it again, I would definitely stamp the sentiments in the same brown I used for the trees, rather than the harsh black.

Constructive criticism would be welcome from artists out there more versed in this style!  Thank you for taking the time to visit today and for all your comments, they are always very welcome!  Have a lovely day . . .  it's pouring with rain here!  Hazel xx

A Rare Post Indeed . . . . Hopefully!

Well folks, my internet is still playing up and my headache is lingering, but I was determined to try and get something made and posted before I go away next Friday!

I have been experimenting with some things I have wanted to try, techniques, products and so on.

So, if the internet will allow, I will show you what I have been up to.

First up is one that I have been meaning to try for a while and that is, just draw some lines in black marker in a random, geographical design (not thought out in any way) and colour the sections in with felt markers - I wanted to see what kind of results I can get with these cheap markers - they are certainly vibrant.  One thing that I did notice was, that you see every stroke, but I think that that gave the sections a bit of added interest, a bit of 'texture' so-to-speak.  This is the result.

My second card is one that I have made with a panel that has been lying around since I realised that I had cut the wrong corner off of the embossed panel for the project I was making at the time!

I also wanted to try to work with thread and try the technique that has been popular with everyone else for a long while (I am always late to the party)  and I used it behind the sentiment die cuts.  This is that one.

Up next is a very simple one that I made from a practice piece that I tried out.  My clever DH made me a home made stamp press with a hinged lid and I wanted to try double stamping (deliberately not inking the stamp completely and then inking it again to make sure it stamped in the same place . . . it did!)  Of course, I couldn't just then throw it away, so I mounted it on to a base card that I had stuck patterned paper on and this is the result.

This last one is one that I had been experimenting with water-colouring backgrounds in various ways and I decided to make this one into a card.  I got out a cover plate die that I hadn't got around to trying yet and cut it out of my water-coloured panel and mounted it on to a dark grey panel.  I then added a flower that I had already stamped and coloured, some vellum leaves and a couple of butterflies and this is the result of that session.

Right, my lovelies . . . here goes . . . let's hope this post doesn't 'time out' . . . it has been a little better today, so fingers crossed!

If you have had the patience to get this far in the post, thank you so very much for your visit.  I appreciate you all.  Have a wonderful evening.  Hazel xx

Two Birds . . . One Card.

Today's card was made with two challenges in mind.  The CAS.ology Week 129 - NBUS Challenge which calls for 'something new to you, and the Craft Stamper - Take It Make It January Challenge - 'Take A Stamp', which calls for us to make a card that has to incorporate the use of a stamp or stamps.

The stamp I used was one that I bought a while back but never got round to using, hence the NBUS - Darnell's acronym for Never Before Used Schtuff - so it was the ideal thing to use for both of the challenges and here is the card.

The stamp I used was My Favorite Things 'Spotlight Sentiments' and the inspiration was a card I saw a while back, that I think was made by one of the MFT team, sorry, but I forget where and who, but if I find it again, I will link to it.

Supplies used:

My Favorite Things, 'Spotlight Sentiments' stamps and My Favorite Things, 'Blueprints 18' dies set.

American Crafts, Textured cardstock and Wink Of Stella, Clear.

Thank you for taking the time to visit today and I appreciate all your comments and will reciprocate.  Hazel x

In With The Old . . . In With The New - NBUS Challenge.

What is the meaning of this twist on an old adage? 

Well, when the old year 2014 left, it took with it my crafting mojo! 

Cue, in with the new, challenge . . . over at my dear blogging friend Darnell's wonderful blog. 

The challenge . . . to use something that you may have had a while and never used . . . hence, NBUS, Never Before Used Schtuff . . . ideal!

This is where you will find this great challenge

And this is what I came up with, explanations are below pics

Detail

Detail

The images were my NBUS supply, which was the beautiful, Altenew, 'Persian Motifs' stamp set, that I just had to get and then never got around to using it!

The sentiment was a slightly newer NBUS, set, which is the, Simon Says Stamp, 'Friendship Messages'  and the golden embossing powder was one of my most favourite embossing powders . . . no, make that my very most favourite of all time!  That has been used a number of times!

So, there you have it, Darnell has started my mojo back up again and kicked off my first post of 2015!  Thanks as always Darnell, and thank you all, who popped in in 2014 and I hope to see you back here and around the various blogs during this year.

As always, I appreciate all your coments and will reciprocate!  Have a great day and year!